What is a liturgical "gathering"?

[Breeze]

Our priest defends the chaos created by people crossing the aisle and leaving their pews to proffer the sign of peace and the people milling within the church and chatting (so loudly that they drown out the choir) when Mass has ended as being not unlike the “social” time before Mass, which is called “the gathering,” and is part of the liturgy. I’m unfamiliar with “the gathering” and would like to find out exactly what it is.

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Presumably, your priest is referring to the Entrance (Latin, Introit, “he enters”) when the priest and those who join him in the liturgical procession enter the church and make their way to the altar, often accompanied by congregational singing. If instead your priest intends to refer to the pre-Mass period in which the congregation enters and finds seats in the church, then that is not a part of the liturgy.

In any case, the solemn liturgical procession that opens Mass is not a “social gathering” of the sort that it appears your priest is defending. The kibitzing of parishioners should be confined to the parking lot or to a parish social center set aside for that purpose. The Mass, on the other hand, is the sacramental re-presentation of Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary, which should be the focus of the congregation during the liturgy. Indeed, if one considers Mass as Calvary re-presented, the chitchat of congregants can be seen as distastefully symbolic of the crowds who came to gawk at the Crucifixion while Christ’s Mother and disciples clustered around him, solemn and attempting to worship amidst the surrounding ruckus.

Recommended reading:

Mass Appeal by Jimmy Akin